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| Madam Speaker, I move that the bill be now read a second time. The bill establishes a Code of Conduct which sets out enforceable principles of ethical conduct and standards of behaviour for members of the Legislative Assembly. It is based on the Code of Conduct which was adopted by the Legislative Assembly on 24 March 2004 and follows legal advice from the Solicitor-General regarding how to make the code more enforceable. The government decided to place the Code into law to ensure it was made more enforceable and to elevate its status in the eyes of the public. It is a policy position which the Labor Party has had for some time and which we enunciated in 2001. In June 2002, the former Chief Minister subsequently tabled the draft documents in this House entitled Legislative Assembly of the Northern Territory (Members’ Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards. The document was referred to the Standing Orders Committee for consideration and advice. The committee, with assistance from officers of the Department of the Legislative Assembly, researched the matter extensively, conferred with experts in the field, and undertook a public consultation process. Issues considered by the Standing Orders Committee included the following: · how the Code was to be enforced. Rather than just have an aspirational document, the consensus view was the Code should have legislative force with enforceable provisions. · how to amend the Code in the future. If, as proposed, the Code has legislative force, then any future amendments will need to also be done by legislative amendments. · accessibility to the public. The committee recommended that the Code remain posted on the Internet if, as recommended, it was a schedule to an act, it would also be freely available as a public document, and · breaches of the Code. Advice was received that to give legal force to the Code, a legislative link would have to be made to the Legislative Assembly (Powers and Privileges) Act and, if established, treated as contempt. Lesser breaches could be referred to the Privileges Committee and, if proven, a reprimand would the likely outcome. The Standing Orders Committee considered Codes of Conduct in Victoria, Tasmania, New South Wales, Queensland, and Western Australia. The content of the various Codes varied widely, however, common elements include: Disclosure of conflict of interest; bribery; gifts; use of public resources; use of confidential information; and responsibilities and duties of a member of parliament. Some other matters dealt with in the interstate codes include: Obligations on the members not to abuse their freedom of speech; obligations not to mislead the parliament or the public; impartiality of members in relationship with lobbyists; the private conduct of members; post-parliamentary employment restrictions, and guidelines for use of member entitlements. A copy of the Legislative Assembly of the Northern Territory Members Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards, which had been tabled in the House, was posted on the Assembly’s website, and the public were invited to make submissions on the matter. The Standing Orders Committee received and considered submissions from the New South Wales Standing Ethics Committee, the Queensland Ethics and Parliamentary Privileges Committee, the member for Nelson, and the Auditor-General. It met with Mr Howard Whitton, the consultant who had prepared the draft code, and with the New South Wales Standing Ethics Committee. Findings and recommendations of the Standing Orders Committee were set out in a report. The committee arranged for a revised Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards to be prepared, and it was this document which was submitted to, and adopted by, this Assembly in March 2004. The committee recommended the Clerk of the Assembly seek appropriate legal advice on a number of issues which had arisen during its investigations and consultations and, following resolution of these issues, that a bill be drafted. Advice was subsequently obtained from the Solicitor-General on matters relating to: Consistency with provisions of the Northern Territory (Self-Government) Act; the enforceability of some of the proposed offences, because of the subjective nature of some of the concepts being described; the enforceability of the self-dealing provisions regarding MLAs and government contracts, and whether it was possible to enforce restrictions on former members’ post-separation employment. Following consideration of this advice, Parliamentary Counsel was subsequently instructed to draft a bill implementing and enforcing the Code and to make the necessary amendments to the Code. It is this bill and revised Code that is currently before the House for consideration. The proposed bill contains the Code of Conduct as a Schedule. It establishes principles of ethical conduct and standards of behaviour for members of the Legislative Assembly under four main headings – integrity, accountability, responsibility and public interest. The Code notes that it is not to be regarded as an exhaustive statement and that members must use their own judgement to determine the appropriate course of conduct in situations not explicitly covered. This conduct should be in accordance with the general principles of ethical behaviour which are set out. Part 2 of the Code sets out the essential principles and standards. It contains 11 sections. Integrity: members must act with integrity in the exercise of official functions duties and responsibilities. Conflict of Interest: members must avoid conflicts, or apparent conflicts, between their private interests and their official functions and responsibilities. Declaration of Interests: a member must not vote in any division on a question affecting a declarable interest unless the member has first declared the interest to the Assembly. In regard to this provision it is noted that a minor amendment has been made to the version that was prepared by the Standing Orders Committee and subsequently adopted by the Assembly. The declaration of interest section defines such interests as including an interest in a contract with the Territory. A provision which seems to suggest that a member could vote in a division concerning such a contract would be inconsistent with the absolute prohibition in section 21(3) of the Northern Territory (Self-Government) Act 1978 which says that an MLA with a direct or indirect interest in a contract with the Territory shall not take part in a discussion of the matter or a vote on the question. Accordingly, a note has been added to the end of item 3 to provide that the declaration of interest principles set out in the schedule only applies in cases of conflict, or possible conflict, of interest where the statutory prohibition in the Northern Territory (Self-Government) Act does not apply. The note has only been added as a guide and to avoid any doubt since Principle 8 in the Schedule dealing with government contracts already provides that a member must not hold directly or indirectly an interest in a contract or arrangement for the provision of services to or for the Territory. Commitments: a member must not engage in any other employment or business activity that involves a substantial commitment of time and effort. Honesty: members must act honestly in all their official dealings and must take care not to mislead the Assembly or the public. Respect for Confidences: a member must respect the confidentiality of information obtained in confidence in the member’s official capacity and not make improper use of it to gain a private benefit. Gifts: a member must not solicit or encourage a gift or private benefit from a constituent or other person with whom the member deals with in an official capacity. Unsolicited and benefits over a certain value will need to be disclosed under the disclosure of interest legislation. Government Contracts: a member must not hold either directly or indirectly an interest in a contract or arrangement for the provision of services to or for the Territory or an agency or instrumentality of the Territory. Accountability: members are accountable to the Assembly, their constituents and the public generally. Responsibility: members must act in accordance with the principle of responsibility. That is, they must endeavour to ensure that their decisions reflect a proper consideration of all relevant matters. They must also endeavour to foster respect for democratic institutions, rights and freedoms, the principles of good governance, including: respect for the institution of the parliament; the rule of law; recognition of the value of social and cultural diversity; fairness and integrity in official decision making; freedom of reporting by media; a non-partisan public service; freedom of speech; and access to justice. The Public Interest: in performing official functions, members must act in what they genuinely believe to be the public interest. The legislation provides that the Assembly may refer an alleged breach of the Code to the Privileges Committee and if the committee finds a breach established may deal with it as a contempt of the Assembly. The principles and standards set out in the proposed legislative code are wide-reaching, simple to understand, and based on best practice after looking at what other Australian jurisdictions do. As the Code notes:
It goes on to further note that:
The implementation of these clear and enforceable principles will be a historic day for the Assembly. The process to reach this point is being convoluted and time-consuming, but I am confident that members will agree that it was worth the wait and it was worth doing the job properly. Together with the new disclosures and interest legislation, this represents a new era in parliamentary democracy in the Northern Territory, entrenching an open, transparent and accountable system of government. Madam Speaker, I commend the bill to honourable members and table the explanatory statements to accompany the bill. Debate adjourned. |